Three-in-one

Rating: Null/10 (29 July 2003)

spoilers
While superficially, 28 Days Later appears to belong to the sub-genre of zombie thriller, it is in fact closer to post-disaster SFI/fantasy flicks such as Mad Max or Terminator. The source of destruction here however is not nuclear annihilation but an infection that turns people into zombie-like biters. These `infected' however do not play as large a part in this movie as some would have you believe. They serve rather as a general threat or `evil' that is always lurking in the background but not quite the subject matter.
The movie is presented in three distinct `movements' if I can use an orchestral analogy. The first is the setting up of the story. It moves slowly, always with an ominous undertone, and leaves the audience wondering where it is going. Most impressive is the use of `Abide With Me', a solitary, barely audible voice meandering through a world sprawling with hideous aftermaths of the virus.
The middle `movement', in the form of a highway movie (which puts it in distinguished companies such as Straight Story, Kikujiro No Natsu and About Schmidt), is the most enjoyable part to watch. The characters are beginning to fall into place: Jim and Selena (hero and heroine), Frank and Hanna (father and daughter). The four of them have made a decision to seek the source of an army broadcast that might lead them to safety. `Ava Maria' is invoked in this part to signify hope and optimism. Interwoven with abrupt outbursts of threat are interludes of tranquility and humor. The natural father-and-daughter affection radiates warmth. The characters of the hero and heroin begin to acquire new dimensions. Selena, initially cold and rational, ready to kill at will for survival, starts to display a softer side. Jim, on the other hand, an almost completely helpless weakling initially, starts to acquire traits of natural violence which can almost be described as bloodthirsty. The tone changes abruptly again in the final movement, when the apparently safety haven provided by a group of 9 soldiers fortified in a big mansion turns nasty. The `human' nature of the soldiers turns out to be no better, or even worse, than the inhuman `infected'. Violence erupts between the soldiers and their `guests', together with cat-and-mouse situations, always against the backdrop of the `infected' ready to break in and wreck havoc. I wouldn't reveal the endings, and no typo here, because there are two, at least in the version shown here in Toronto. Forewarned, we stay till the lengthy ending credit is completely over, to see the alternative ending which is introduced casually with the words `and what if' appearing on bottom right of the screen.
28 Days Later is not for everyone. However, those with an appreciation for the imaginative and a taste for the bizarre would probably enjoy it.